Tag Archives: career tips

Do you like looking at houses? Do you keep track of the good schools in your town or city? Are you aware of the good neighborhoods and not-so-good neighborhoods in your city or town? When you see a home for sale or a new residential development, are you curious about the asking prices for the home(s)? If you answered yes to any of these questions, real estate might be a good career or business choice for you! According to CNN Money, the U.S real estate market is hot again! Interest rates are still low, and unemployment is at a 10-year low of 4.5%. This might be the perfect time to consider a career or business in real estate. Typically, when we ponder a career in real estate, we automatically think “real estate agent.” However, there are many different types of careers or businesses in the real estate industry, such as:

property manager

rental manager

real estate investor

real estate analyst

property maintenance (cleaning, painting, repairing, installing)

home inspector

mortgage broker

insurance agent

Some of the aforementioned careers or businesses require a license or certification. Other careers or businesses require no official credentials, such as property management, rental manager, and real estate investor. “Over50” individuals have decades of experience, which can be the most important factor when considering a career or business in real estate. To determine if real estate is the right business for you, click here. To learn more about career opportunities in real estate staffing, consulting, mergers and acquisitions, click here.

Are you looking for a second career or business? If so, please share your thoughts by joining us at thefiftyplusnetwork.com!

Brynn has been in the information technology (IT) arena for many years. What she has learned is that the only constant in the IT arena is change! Technology is constantly changing and if you don’t continue to train and learn new concepts and technologies, you will fall behind. Typically, an employer will pay the costs for training, particularly when the technology is needed to do the job. However, during times of tight budgets, it may be necessary for an employee to pay the training costs out of pocket. Several times during her career, Brynn has paid for her own training. After completing the training and receiving the certificate, she lists the course on her resume. When employers and recruiters notice the training on her resume, she is able to leverage the training into a new job opportunity! Brynn invested in herself by paying for the training out of pocket, and reaped the benefits by obtaining a new job opportunity.

Sometimes it is necessary to get certified in a particular technology. Certification usually involves taking several courses, and passing a test to get certified. When Brynn began her career, it was enough to have a degree in a technology-related area. If you didn’t have a degree, hands-on training and a few technology courses usually met the requirements. Now, many employers require certification, in addition to degrees. Many years ago, Brynn worked with a gentleman who reinvented himself. His name was Mike. At that time, he was in his 40s. Mike was a Psychologist, but realized he could have a stable income and incredible opportunities by obtaining a certificate in Oracle database technology. He had to take several courses, and pass an exam at an official testing center to obtain his certificate. Most likely, it cost him $10k – $20k out of pocket. However, he was able to get an IT job making very good money! That was a huge career change (and risk) for him, but it paid off.

How do you know if you have the aptitude to retrain and learn new technologies? Think back to high school … Were you good in math? If you were, then you have the aptitude to learn new technologies! Do you have hands-on experience but have not received formal training? If the answer is yes, then you have a good chance at elevating your career! Before spending any money, check with the big technology companies like Microsoft and Oracle. They usually have free online webinars to introduce new technologies. Poke around on their websites and sign up for free emails/newsletters to notify you about training/product announcements. Brynn has even used her vacation time to attend free conferences! She sits in on seminars, networks, and collects free technical literature. Immerse yourself in whatever it is you are trying to learn! For more information on changing careers, click here.

Do you have any tips for reinventing yourself or changing careers? If so, share your tips by joining us at The Fifty Plus Network:

The Big 3 for those of us over the age of 50 are: Health, Career/Business Options, Retirement. The Big 3 will be the focus of our website, thefiftyplusnetwork.com. The impetus for the website came from an article on career challenges for “over 50” employees. One of the interviewees said she wished there was a place to network about issues important to folks over the age of 50. Thus an idea was born! Our goal at thefiftyplusnetwork.com is to become an online meeting place to encourage and help one another, and to share ideas and tips. To join The Fifty Plus Network:

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